Unconditional
by shadowblade-tara
Summary: When Kenshin is forced to break his vow, Kaoru won't just let him walk away.


Rurouni Kenshin © not mine.

This is my first Kenshin fic, so be prepared for a bit of experimentation. Also, be prepared for an act that's rather out of character by our favorite swordsman.

**Unconditional**

Kaoru left to teach at a different dojo that morning. She was invited by Li, a tall, wiry man with a kind smile and bright eyes. Kenshin never met this Li. Kaoru came back from the market and told him about the meeting and the invitation, and Kenshin simply told her to have fun and be careful. Yahiko went with her.

She teaches his students for about an hour. This is warm-up for her. She's used to practicing and sparring with others for far longer than this. But after an hour, Li stops the lessons. He approaches her with a small smile on his face. "You're very good, Kaoru-san. Would you like a chance to spar with me?" he asks.

Kaoru can sense nothing wrong with the request. She nods. "Of course, Li-san." By the door, Yahiko brightens instantly. This isn't the first time a dojo master has requested a sparring match. The few times Kaoru didn't win, it was a draw. They always left with a lot more respect than they came in with.

Once the first strike lands, Kaoru loses her confidence fast. Li's blow is strong enough that her arms go numb from the block. He's not just strong, he's fast. She can barely keep up as he slowly forces her backwards towards he wall. His students are cheering him on, but Kaoru doesn't really care about a good show anymore. From the first blow, she could feel it. This is not a sparring match.

This is a real fight, and she is sorely outclassed.

Her eyes find Yahiko, silently begging him to leave. They were brought here for this fight, and she will not allow her first student – her little brother – to be hurt because she couldn't see Li's true intentions. Thankfully, he nods and runs off.

Li laughs. "Your pupil has abandoned you already." He smiles at her, and it contains none of the kindness she remembers. Damn, but she's screwed. "Are you ready for your final fight?"

She's breathing hard and already she can feel bruises, but she grins regardless. This is going to suck.

/-/

"KENSHIN!"

Yahiko skids to a halt right next to Kenshin, almost knocking over the soap bucket. Kenshin automatically stands up, reaching out and bracing the younger boy. "What happened? Yahiko, what's wrong?" Another sudden, terrifying thought. "Where is Kaoru?"

The boy is breathing so hard Kenshin almost can't understand him. "Li – challenged – her – too strong!" There are tears forming in his eyes. His legs are shaking. He's about two seconds away from collapsing.

Kenshin scoops him up and places him on his back. "Show me."

Yahiko points. "That way." he says. "I'll say – turn."

And Kenshin takes off.

/-/

By the time they make it to Li's dojo, the fight has already taken a turn for the worse. Kenshin slowly lets Yahiko down, staring wordlessly at the carnage. Kaoru's bokken is snapped, she's gripping the fragmented edge with a desperation that sickens him, and he can barely see her skin beneath the bruises and cuts. Li has traded his bokken for a real katana. He smiles down at her.

"I am _tired_ of losing my students to a woman."

Kaoru glares at him. "So you decided to kill that woman to let everyone know how big and strong you are." she spits out. "Pathetic."

It barely registers to Kenshin that Li is just as bruised and bloodied as Kaoru – she gave as good as she got. Something inside him snaps.

"If you touch her, I will kill you."

Li's gaze snaps over to Kenshin. Kaoru doesn't have to look to know – the _rurouni_'s eyes are glowing gold. This is Battosai. Li smirks. "And who the hell are you?"

"That is none of your concern." Kenshin comes to stand in between the two. One hand is clenched on the hilt of his sakabato, the other comes to rest lightly on the top of Kaoru's head. She can feel it trembling on her scalp. "You will not touch her."

Li smiles. "And what are you going to do to stop me?"

Kenshin's eyes narrow. "Find out." His voice is dark with the challenge.

Kaoru doesn't see what Li does. Kenshin's hand rests heavier on her head for a brief moment, then the pressure is gone. Slowly, painfully, she looks up.

Li decided to take him on.

It doesn't take Li long to learn what Kaoru already knows – now he's the one who's outclassed. Badly. And worse, Kenshin is not inclined to make it a fair fight. He's going after Li with everything he has. He's not even trying to avoid the other man's students. He is, however, taking great care to not fight near Kaoru or the front door, where Yahiko stands.

For a moment, Kaoru dares to believe it's over. She dares to believe she's safe, because no one has incurred this level of wrath from Kenshin before and managed to get past him. Then pain blossoms through her side, just below her breast, and suddenly it hurts to breathe. She looks down.

The hilt of a small dagger protrudes from her flesh. She can't stop the gasp of pain.

Kenshin hears the sound. Somehow, Li got around him. He threw the dagger in one last attempt to kill Kaoru. This has to end, quickly, so Kenshin can assess the damage.

He doesn't think it over. That would cost him precious time. In one swift movement, he rotates the blade in his hand and brings it down. Li falls to the ground and doesn't move again.

Silence descends upon the dojo. Kenshin sheathes his blade and turns back to Kaoru. Gently, he pulls the blade from her side and patches it up the best he can. He lifts her into his arms and stands up. "Yahiko," he says softly, "get Megumi-san. Take her to the dojo."

"Of course." With that Yahiko darts off.

Kenshin doesn't bother to look back. He just walks out of the dojo, taking care not to jostle his cargo.

/-/

He sticks around until he knows Kaoru will heal, until Megumi states that the bandages can finally come off and Kaoru can move around with minimal pain. That night, he packs his few possessions and leaves.

Well, he tries to. Kaoru stands outside of the dojo, waiting for him, arms crossed over her chest. The moonlight illuminates her new scars. Kenshin looks. "You should let me go, that you should."

"Whoever said I do what I should?" She sits down on the step and motions for him to join her. Wordlessly, he does. She won't look at him. "Why are you leaving?"

"I – I killed, Kaoru-dono." he stammers. "I broke my oath."

"Okay. Why?"

He blinks. "Oro?"

"Why did you kill Li?" She finally glances at him. "I had a knife in my chest at the time, so I wasn't paying much attention."

He flinches at the thought. "You – you were hurt, you were. I couldn't let the fight – there was no time – "

She spares him the struggle to find words. "I was hurt, and there wasn't time to beat him into submission. So you ended the battle the fastest way you knew how, which was to kill him." He flinches again. Kaoru smiles. "Thank you."

"Oro?"

"If you hadn't come, if you hadn't killed him, he would have killed me."

There's a long pause. "Why are you thanking me for killing someone?"

Kaoru sighs. "Look, I've always known you would kill for me. I learned it when you went after Jin'e. Then I was able to stop you, because killing him was exactly what he wanted from you. This time – if there was a way to get around that, you would have. There wasn't, so you didn't. It's that simple."

Kenshin laughs bitterly. "I only wish I could trust myself as much as you do, Kaoru-dono, that I do." He sighs. "I think I wanted to kill him."

"Maybe you did, maybe you didn't." Kaoru says. "The point is – if he hadn't thrown the knife, what would you have done?"

"Beaten him." The answer comes with no hesitation. Kaoru smiles.

"See? My point exactly." She stands up, but Kenshin's voice stops her.

"I was Battosai."

For a long moment, neither speaks. "When I asked you to stay, I said I wanted you, not Battosai." Kenshin nods. "Well, you _are_ Battosai. Kenshin and Battosai are the same, whoever you choose to be. And I want you both to stay."

Kenshin whips around, staring up at Kaoru with wide eyes flecked with gold. Kaoru just smiles at him. "I'm not going to drive you out. But if you leave tonight, I will hunt you down, Kenshin." With that she walks back into the dojo.

For a moment, the _rurouni_ considers. Then, with a small, helpless laugh, he goes back into the dojo.

/-/

AN: So, for a first try, whaddya think?


End file.
